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RE: Freestyle, I asked the other night and was told by a TM working one of the stands that 'we aren't doing those this year'. I take it with a grain of salt for now since that's just one person's answer. You're always welcome to re-activate a previous HHN cup to use and I saw plenty of that.
People are definitely overreacting to the alcohol changes.
My only issue is this: from what I heard (officially rumour of course but likely true), all of the 'shot girls' who often do every event we have were ready to go do their jobs and came in to find out they weren't needed. Some were reassigned, others were just let go. To me, that's crappy to see as someone who's directly benefitted from UO's generally benevolent treatment of (some) TMs compared to other places.
Also, it'd be a hell of a waste if all those shots were ready to be served and ended up being destroyed after this decision. That's just a thought of mine, no confirmation to back it up--but considering Disney just did something similar with another type of merch they pulled last-minute, I wouldn't be surprised.
The 'official' word on the changes is that they wanted people to be able to get in and out of bar lines more quickly. If you're ordering custom mixed drinks, it takes longer. Now you only have a few quick beer and wine choices and/or the pre-mixed swill to choose from and you're in and out in 30 seconds. It makes sense, but I'm curious to see the effect on both crowds and revenue. I'm guessing we make more off of a $13 blinky drink than a regular cocktail. Still doesn't explain axing the shot girls.

Skipped out on the event last night after a short time at Volcano Bay (the moratorium on TMs and comps was finally lifted!) but I heard it was fairly light on crowds. I'm wondering if certain tactics like having QS restaurants open to suck up crowds reduced the waits. I'll be very curious to see the attendance patterns over the next few weeks.
Also, Pizza Fries are gross. Sue me.

Friend of mine was working near the front of Dead Waters on Saturday. He did his scare as we passed by and some drunk tourist lady behind us literally jumped straight forward and wrapped her arms around me. I'm used to getting touched by people I know, but never buy a fellow guest! Major points to him for causing that

I'm gonna recommend Purge as a hangout zone, which seems really strange, but FOTD really isn't doing it for me like I thought it might and they seem to have (strategically?) placed a ton of fog machines behind most of the park benches out there. Purge has more open space on the sidewalks and I've been getting better interactions there overall.
A quick addendum after last night: AOV is using the temporary stage in front of Horror Makeup to put on a 10-minute show "Presented by Irma" ;). If they're still doing it tonight and beyond, don't be turned off by the first segment being from last year's show--the rest is new, and they've done an AWESOME job coming up with this last-minute abridged version. I'm even more excited to see their full show once the main stage is back together. Not sure on timeline for that but probably fairly soon.
Also, managed to hit Saw last night, and the iffy design shows. I'm sure plenty of people like the movies and liked the house last time they did it, but it just wasn't great. Plenty of traps to distract while the pig masks go in for the jumpscares, of which nearly all were predictable and not well-hidden.
Inside the Magic managed to get videos of ALL 9 houses last night, so catch them before some are inevitably taken down. I think I'll hit Blumhouse and Shining on Sunday as I'm going it alone tonight. Still feeling really good about this year overall!

OK, so here’s my very preliminary review based on last night’s shenanigans.
Major disclaimer: Hurricane Irma really messed up HHN prep this year from what I've heard, not so much in terms of things being damaged, but because of all the rehearsals that were cancelled and man-hours lost over the weekend we were closed. Thanks to that and the shift from having this night be for TMs AND their invited guests to strictly TM-only, with full-blown 'this is a dress rehearsal' communication just about everywhere in the park, I can't make a complete judgement as everything is still finishing up. I will probably do a full review with ratings/rankings about halfway through the season.
That said: For all the complaining we did, the worries we had, the upset we experienced with the marketing and presentation of this event this year, the moment I was in the park, soaking in the atmosphere, everything just melted away. HHN is incredible every year and this year is no exception. It felt SO good to have it back. So 10/10 for the feels.
I do want to mention merch this year as I think they did two things right this time around: Firstly, everything with the skull motif still has a unique vibe to each piece as opposed to last year where it was all ‘Buy Chance’s Face on a Shirt! Buy Chance’s Face on a MUG!!!!’. Also, the Bill and Ted’s merch makes my heart happy (and my wallet empty).
My one caveat: I’m a big girl. Probably just a little bit chubbier than Chance. In any reasonable sizing range I’m about a 1X. I was very excited to see a nice, feminine tunic with the main skull motif in the shop in sizes up to a 2X. So I bought the 2X and went to change into it...and it’s TINY. Luckily I can sew, so I’ll be taking my seam ripper to it and letting it out but be warned, ladies of a certain dimension. Pretty much everything ‘women’s’ is really ‘junior’s’ sizing. Boo.
Food and Bev were knockouts. I especially love the new Mini Donuts. I did manage to buy my blinky cup with some Liquid Fear and it’s a 9/10 (losing a point because for some reason it was WEAK on the alcohol this year, and a small part of me hopes that’s just because they didn’t want us TMs getting wasted).
Anyway, here’s what you all came for!
Shows:
-Bill and Ted's was...excellent! I won't spoil too much, but if you're a long-time fan, prepare for some waterworks. There are several moments where you just feel the love that's been poured into this Farewell Tour. The show as a whole had some slow moments and it all feels about the same quality as last year, which seems to pale in comparison to many previous shows. If you love B&T, you're gonna love it. If you're lukewarm, you might not. But I think we can all agree it will be missed.
-Academy of Villains were NOT performing yesterday as their stage is still being rebuilt at this moment. It was all taken down in prep for the hurricane. We will have to make our judgement tomorrow.
Zones:
-Festival of the Deadliest was a shell of what it will be due to hurricane reasons. I have a feeling that even with the complete setup tomorrow it will not be as active/interesting as Vamp was last year. Probably closer to 25's zone in this area with no large props in the middle of the road, though I'm unsure if any of the small stages will attract those crowds.
-Invasion! is up there for my favourite zone. It’s got so much great stuff packed into it and I can only hope it isn’t a bottleneck most nights. The SAs will make this zone as much as the costumes/sets will and I’m sure once everyone is in the groove of their area this will be many people’s favourite.
-The Purge kind of just feels like last year with less cool costumes and props, BUT the SAs here are KILLING it already. Really happy with their interactions. Looking forward to spending more time here.
-Trick R’ Treat looks incredible at night, as expected. The SAs seem to be figuring out their roles but there was really not that much interaction as we passed through, despite the zone being fairly empty. I was expecting a lot more but I think it will improve.
-Altars of Horror is just...such a waste of a zone. I don’t know if there’s any more additions planned (like the stages for FOTD), but either way it really is just a Selfie/Photo Zone. And the SAs were definitely trained for that. They seemed more willing to pose for a photo than they were to go for a scare. The zone itself is dreadfully empty with just those advertisement-like signs for all the IPs. I’m hoping on busier nights it will seem less empty as people hang out here. Probably the only redeeming quality at this point were the Grady Twins walking hand in hand up and down the road. They look creepy as hell!
Houses:
-Saw, The Shining, and Blumhouse are the 3 I’ve skipped for now. I am waiting until Friday in hopes that media get the chance to film so I can judge the creep factor before I go.
-AHS is our Ubermaze this year but I hate to say it...it felt LONG this time around. Last year’s seasons were so different in theming and color palette that you almost felt like the house was really 3 different ones back-to-back. This year’s 3 are so similar that it feels like one long, long walkthrough, with just a small hint of transition between the seasons. I went into both years having watched 1 out of 3 seasons, so I wasn’t going in totally blind but I’m guessing if I’d watched all 6 it might have been more enjoyable. The SAs in here are really promising though (I’m told they had minimal rehearsal due to hurricane).
-Ash vs. Evil Dead both scared the shit out of me and left me grinning like a maniac by the end. It’s gonna be at the top of my list all season if they keep it up. Granted, I’ve never seen the show, but I know the premise and I’ve seen some clips. Die-hard fans may have gripes with some of the scenes/missing scenes, but the ones that stand out will make you point and laugh and give A&D major kudos.
-Scarecrow is INTENSE. Out of the 6 houses I fit in, it was the most challenging. Combo of atmosphere, tight corridors, costumes/set creepiness, and frequency of scares makes up the intensity. My partner came out of the house and immediately said ‘THIS is what an original is supposed to be like!’. It’s quite detailed but you don’t have much time to notice a lot of it.
-Hive had me rolling my eyes at the non-facade, and I’m not sure how I feel about it yet. About halfway through there was a vampire who looked decidedly like Nosferatu and seeing that changed my entire perspective. I need to go back and pay more attention to the details. I left this one with several scares but really no sense of what the hell I’d just seen, lol.
-Dead Waters? Dead. Waters. God, it’s incredible. This needs to be on my lights-on tour. I want to just steep in there and soak in the atmosphere. Good shit. Good. Shit. SAs are getting into the groove in here as well and I expect improvement over the season. Seeing the Voodoo Queen made me want to jump for joy. She’s gorgeous.
-The Fallen, with the cuts mentioned by Ringwraith, seemed half-empty for obvious reasons. There’s so much story missing now. But the bungee SAs are incredible, so this is on my list for several re-dos to see them again.
Anyway, to sum last night up: 10/10, really. The love that A&D puts into this event makes up for all the negatives. Things are going to improve for sure, but I left the park last night feeling rejuvenated in a way that nothing else really makes me feel. I will be around most nights so check the meetup and member photo threads if you’d like to hang out!

Zones:
1) Invasion!. The props on the street look incredible and from closer inspection I have a hunch that saucer is gonna light up somehow. Only foreseeable con is that this SZ is always a bottleneck.
2) Trick R' Treat. Screams classic Halloween with all those pumpkins and I really, really want a bunch of little Sams running around. Fingers crossed. Con is again, bottleneck zone, and the door props aren't going to help.
3) Festival of the Deadliest. The aesthetics will make this one great. This is always my favourite SZ to hang out in regardless of theme thanks to the ample park benches. Looking forward to many evenings out there.
4) Altars of Horror. This is literally just a 'Selfie Zone' in the same vein as Die-In at 25--this time it's blatantly advertised as one, too. Boo.
5) Purge. Just...no. I haven't even SEEN another Purge house or zone and I do not want.
Houses:
1) Dead Waters. 'Nough said. It looks incredible. And there better be an intestine-heavy sacrifice.
2) AHS. Hoping I can handle this one, if last year's was anything like this one will be I think we'll be in for a treat.
3) The Fallen. This is Gothicombs, yes? Love that aesthetic, and IIRC this is the one that will have flying SAs if rumor is true.
4) Ash vs. Evil Dead. Never seen the film or series but I have seen clips now--horror/comedy is always great. I want that moose head to be in there.
5) Hive. Just the concept is intriguing, really looking forward to seeing the execution.
6) Scarecrow. Just a personal preference, haha. I love me my scarecrows.
7) Shining. Only this low because I won't be visiting it during the event, but only this high because I have my fingers crossed it'll be in my lights-on tour. We all know it's gonna look fantastic.
8) Saw. Another one I probably won't visit, but will definitely be some people's favourite.
9) Blumhouse. Maybe I'm just salty because neither coast gets anything from Get Out. Not a definite no-go for me, but I'll probably enjoy whatever videos are taken of it from the comfort of my couch.
All in all my anticipatory rating is probably a 3.5 or 4/5. Originals look incredible and as always, the SAs will make it worth the time spent.

So we haven't had any official announcement of the originals on the blog or HHN social?
The most important and relationship-saving reveal for HHN and the diehard fans, and some newspaper gets to 'leak' it?
I've been indifferent to most of the other marketing BS but what the hell?
Originals apparently don't matter to the team anymore. Only IPs get big flashy announcements now. That smarts.

I just laughed out loud at my desk....trust me, you probably get paid way better. Not to pooh-pooh on my employer because they at least have higher average wages than that rodent down I-4 (and they've got great benes/have been extraordinary supportive of me in several areas)...but there are a lot of people out here who are stuck being paid a crap hourly starting rate despite having major responsibilities for some of the stuff guests see. (Not just me, you'd be shocked how many/what kind of people.)
[Also, I wish I could have HNN on my desktop but I'd rather not risk it so I just use my phone, lmao]
Anyway, enough bitching about that, back to your regularly scheduled bitching about Marketing

It was not an 'extreme' house in the same way other haunts have done. SAs had major interaction which did include some touching but it was mostly gentle/nonviolent. The VR was the selling point, not that it was 'extreme'. Compared to some escape rooms I've done (it had those elements as well), Repository was rather tame.

Not sure when preview night will be (hasn't been officially announced to us) but a heads-up to anyone who might have wanted to go--TMs are NOT getting guest tickets for preview night this year. They are tightening it up, it seems. Maybe it's because of all the filming/photos they take.
Instead of the preview they're letting people use one comp ticket for HHN. The public-facing team site has the dates.